【Major Equipment in the Chemical Equipment Industry】102 – Domestic-made large valves for ethylene cracking gas

Thread Content

This post was last edited by Desert Fish on 2022-4-14 at 19:28. The past decade has been a period of rapid development in China’s chemical industry, with the emergence of many new processes, products, and equipment. China’s chemical processing equipment has also seen significant progress, which has contributed to the swift advancement of the petrochemical sector. Here, we have compiled some of the achievements and breakthroughs made by Chinese equipment manufacturers in terms of larger-scale production and increased use of domestic equipment. Everyone is welcome to share their thoughts and opinions; let’s cheer for Made in China and support the development of chemical processing equipment! *********************************** On March 19, 2021, Sinopec’s first 200,000 tons per year heavy oil cracking unit was successfully commissioned and put into operation at China-Korea (Wuhan) Petrochemical Co., Ltd., entering the production phase. This furnace is the largest heavy oil cracking furnace owned by Sinopec Group, and it constitutes an important part of the 1.1 million tons per year ethylene capacity expansion project carried out by Sino-Korea Petrochemical. Once put into operation, it will effectively increase the production capacity of the ethylene plant. The 4 new type of pyrolysis gas valves (with the largest diameter reaching 48″) produced by Beijing Aerospace No. 11 Institute (Beijing Aerospace Petrochemical Technology and Equipment Engineering Co., Ltd.) are operating well as core equipment for the pyrolysis furnace, playing a crucial role in ensuring the smooth operation of the entire installation. This is the first time that this type of pyrolysis gas valve has been successfully operated in a newly built ethylene project, and it will serve as an excellent model for its further adoption and dissemination. The pyrolysis gas valve is one of the key components of the pyrolysis furnace; it is located at the outlet of the furnace and serves as the only barrier between the pyrolysis furnace and the main pipeline. Its performance has a direct impact on the safety of ethylene pyrolysis production. For a long time, imported cracking gas valves have maintained a market share of over 80% in China’s ethylene plants, with almost all new ethylene projects opting for imported products. However, imported valves not only have high prices and slow service, but also present many problems during use; in particular, large-diameter valves of 40″ and above commonly suffer from difficulties in opening and closing, stuck mechanical interlocks, and damaged sealing surfaces. If a sticking fault occurs during a period when no major repairs are underway, multiple people are required to manually operate the valve for several hours, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive. Based on years of use, apart from disassembly for maintenance, there is no more effective solution, which causes great inconvenience to users. To address this bottleneck in China’s ethylene industry, Beijing Aerospace Institute No. 11 utilized its more than 20 years of experience in developing such products and adopted a number of technological innovations, including load-resistant valve bodies. These innovations effectively solved problems such as sticking, coking, and poor sealing performance that occur when large-diameter valves operate under harsh conditions, thereby enhancing the reliability and safety of system operation and reducing the risks associated with ethylene production. Since all the innovative structures feature a modular design, they maintain consistency with the user’s existing products in terms of weight and connection dimensions, offering high interchangeability; this provides significant advantages in maintenance, replacement, and expansion projects ； In new construction projects, its overall performance and cost advantages are even more prominent.